The grand vizier 

Edwin Lord Weeks created this painting titled ‘The Grand Vizier’ sometime during his career which spanned from 1849 to 1903. Weeks was known for his Orientalist paintings, a genre that often romanticized or exoticized Middle Eastern and Asian cultures through a Western lens. Here, we see a high-ranking official, presumably the Grand Vizier, on horseback, surrounded by what appear to be attendants. The Vizier is adorned in rich, red fabrics that contrast with the workers' modest clothing. Weeks, an American artist, is negotiating class and power structures here, but from a distance. He never fully understands the cultural nuances he is representing, and the figures become types rather than individuals. Weeks' work reflects the 19th-century Western fascination with the ‘Orient’, an interest that was fueled by colonialism, trade, and a desire for the ‘exotic’. But what does it mean to see another culture through the eyes of an outsider? Weeks offers a glimpse into a world he observed, touching on themes of hierarchy, labor, and identity. Yet, it also leaves you questioning the complex power dynamics inherent in the act of observation itself.